National Day of Mourning today

Wednesday

Dec 5, 2018 at 11:00 AM

President George H.W. Bush's funeral service today.

Today has been declared a national day of mourning in honor of President George H.W. Bush, who passed away Friday at the age of 94. Federal government offices are closed today, as is the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ.

The former president’s body was flown to Washington Monday to lie in state at the Capitol Rotunda ahead of this morning’s state funeral at the National Cathedral. He will be buried Thursday at his presidential library in Texas.

Sen. Chris Coons said the 41st president was “an example for us all.”

“Few U.S. presidents have faced the momentous shifts in geopolitics faced by President George Herbert Walker Bush,” Coons said. “From the end of the Cold War and the reunification of Germany to nuclear non-proliferation agreements with the Soviet Union and the Persian Gulf War, President Bush advanced American interests and values. He dedicated his life to public service.

"His service as a Navy pilot in World War II, U.S. congressman, ambassador to the UN and to China, director of the CIA, vice president, and as our 41st president, And his lifelong commitment to volunteerism and service, all demonstrate his dedication to and love for our country. I send my most heartfelt thoughts and prayers to the entire Bush family.”

Sen. Tom Carper called Bush “a true public servant.”

“He loved this country,” carper said. “He believed in our institutions and in the strength of the American spirit. And he exemplified what it truly means to be a leader.

“Above all, though, President George H.W. Bush was a good man who treated others with kindness and respect — regardless of their politics. We could all learn from the example he set, and we could use more like him right now, on both sides of the aisle.”